a day ago
Urgent fish recall in three states that could leave people PARALYZED for life
The FDA has announced a recall set at the highest risk level of smoked herring found to contain the bacteria that cause botulism, which can cause paralysis and death.
The P East Trading Corp of Bronx, N distributed 81 cases of the fish across retailers in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut.
The fish were over five inches in length and were not gutted, making them more susceptible to contamination with Clostridium botulinum spores.
The FDA's classification, Class 1, is the most serious type of recall, occurring when there is a reasonable probability that consuming or using a product will cause serious health effects or death.
The Salted Smoked Split Herring was packaged in 18lb wooden boxes with the container code Lot 1 PRC5073. It was manufactured by Sea Star Seafood Ltd in Canada.
There have been no reported illnesses linked to the fish; however, due to the severe and potentially life-threatening nature of the bacteria, consumers are advised not to eat it and should return it to the store where they purchased it.
The recall came after the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets Food Inspector sampled the fish.
An investigation later confirmed the fish was not properly gutted, a concern because the toxic bacteria 'are more likely to be concentrated in the viscera [internal organs] than any other portion of the fish.'
Botulism is a life-threatening infection that causes a range of symptoms approximately one day after exposure.
Those symptoms include blurred or double vision, slurred speech, drooping eyelids, difficulty swallowing, nausea, vomiting, and muscle weakness.
'People experiencing these problems should seek immediate medical attention,' the FDA said.
The agency stated that the fish was repacked by stores in deli-style or retail packaging, rather than its sealed, original packaging, which risks improper handling that could cause temperature fluctuations or cross-contamination.
It was sold in 69 stores: 60 in New York, eight in New Jersey, and one in Connecticut.
The affected products have likely reached thousands of people who shop in these stores.
If left untreated, the toxin can disrupt communication between the brain and muscles after entering the bloodstream.
Botulism and the bacteria that causes it are rare, causing about 200 cases per year with a death rate of three to five percent. But this is not the first recall of its kind to be issued this year.
In February, the FDA announced a recall of lots of canned tuna distributed by Tri-Union Seafoods and sold under the Genova, Van Camp's, H-E-B, and Trader Joe's brand names.
Botulism binds to nerve endings and cuts critical proteins that usually help release a chemical that tells muscles to contract.
Without that chemical release, muscles fail to receive the message, and paralysis begins. It starts in the face and descends to the throat, the limbs, the diaphragm, and eventually, the muscles that control breathing.
The infection can be cured with an antitoxin, which neutralizes the toxin that has infiltrated the bloodstream, if administered within 24 to 72 hours of symptom onset.
A patient may also require mechanical ventilation for weeks or even months.
With swift treatment, the death rate of botulism falls to five to 10 percent. Without the antitoxin, over 50 percent of patients die.
Claudia de Albuquerque Celada, a 23-year-old Brazilian woman working in Colorado, was left paralyzed and on a ventilator after contracting botulism from improperly handled store-bought soup.
She was placed on a ventilator after the neurotoxin paralyzed her respiratory muscles.
She first experienced blurred vision, dizziness, and difficulty breathing before full-body paralysis set in within 24 hours.
Health officials traced the case to a pre-packaged soup stored in a plastic jar, though lab tests on the product came back negative, suggesting the toxin formed due to improper refrigeration, insufficient reheating, or leaving leftovers unrefrigerated too long.
Historical outbreaks of botulism linked to improperly processed fish have occurred both in the US and around the world, often linked to fermentation, salt-curing, or storage methods that inadvertently encourage the production of toxins.
In the US, federal regulations require the proper gutting and processing of fish to mitigate risks from C. botulinum.
The FDA enforces strict Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point requirements for seafood manufacturers.
They must prove that their safety measures actually work, using science-backed processes and have to maintain records to demonstrate these measures are consistently effective.
